Wal-Mart picks up Scottish spuds

Packaging designs for Rooster brand potatoes to be sold in the U.S. are not yet available, but this package is familiar to consumers in the United Kingdom where Albert Bartlett & Sons Ltd. has been selling potatoes since 1948.

Photo by Courtesy Albert Bartlett & Sons Ltd.

Albert Bartlett’s Rooster brand potatoes will be available for the first time in the U.S. this fall at Wal-Mart stores through a partnership with MountainKing Potatoes.

Known in the United Kingdom since 1948, Albert Bartlett & Sons Ltd. has more than 80 potato growers in Scotland and offers a full line of varieties, including its branded Rooster, Apache and Purple Majesty potatoes.

The Roosters are described as “all-rounders” on the Albert Bartlett website, which states they have shallow eyes and “floury yellow flesh.” They will not be available at all Wal-Mart stores, but only in certain regions.

“We’ve been working on bringing the Rooster brand to the U.S. market for about four years,” said John Hicks, vice president of sales and marketing for Albert Bartlett. “We brought over tissue cultures and have been working with MountainKing."

Hicks came to the U.S. in January and is now based at Albert Bartlett’s new offices in Denver. He is working with Houston-based MountainKing on the joint potato venture. Hicks said Albert Bartlett is committed to using growers in the areas where their branded potatoes are sold.

The Scottish company recently entered the retail potato scene in The Netherlands and The Czech Republic with regional growers in those countries. Soon Albert Bartlett potatoes will be available in French supermarkets through a similar program that saw the Scottish company use its coveted potato tissue to launch growing operations in France.

Hicks said the owners of Albert Bartlett understand russets are the No. 1 potato in the U.S., but they believe American consumers will respond to their marketing efforts this fall when the red potatoes of the Rooster brand begin hitting shelves in Wal-Mart stores.

Albert Bartlett may eventually introduce its other varieties to the U.S. and other countries, but now only the Rooster potatoes are available outside the United Kingdom.

Hicks said consumer response to the Rooster potatoes will dictate when and where the company expands in the U.S. If the red potatoes prove popular enough Albert Bartlett could be in the market for additional growing partners. He declined to comment on the initial volumes anticipated this fall.

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About the Author:

Coral Beach, Staff Writer

Coral Beach joined The Packer newsroom in February 2011, bringing more than 30 years of experience at daily newspapers, trade magazines and online publications. Beach earned a bachelor’s of science degree from the University of Kansas School of Journalism in 1982.
e-mail: cbeach@thepacker.com
phone: 913-438-0781